Author: Dakin Hardwick

Single of the Week: “Hundred Aces” by Noname

NICE! It’s been a bit since the last Noname track graced our eardrums. And the song she gave us? “Hundred Acres” is the kind of immediate head-nodder track that could be your guiding light through the dark winter ahead. An infectious piano riff, effortless delivery, complex rhyme schemes, a hook that rings in your head, and it’s just plain a killer track. 

“Hundred Acres” is the first release from Noname’s upcoming album, Cartoon Radio, which I’m eagerly anticipating. Until then, why not join Noname’s book club? 

How Did Black Polish Get Here?

20-Year-Old Jayden Binnix, aka Black Polish, just released their second album, YUNA, a concept album about a succubus that feeds off the souls of men. It’s pretty bonkers and amazing, and we had a wonderful chat about this record, their early work, being a non-binary artist on a major label, and, as usual, a bunch of nerdy wormholes were stumbled upon.

YUNA  is out TODAY from BMG. Stream it at your favorite DSP!

Single of the Week: “Cost Of Living” by Jewelry Exchange

There are a few musical tricks that I love more than a song that is just a continuous build-up of anxiety. “Cost Of Living” by Jewelry Exchange is *almost* that. It’s weird, because it’s both anxious AND hopeful, which is a line I keep finding myself balancing these days. It’s so bloody good, and the end? It just leaves you feeling dropped. Much like, well, life in 2025. I’m still not sure what I’m supposed to feel with this song, but I’m going to put it on again in hopes that I find it. 

“Cost of Living” is the first single off Jewelry Exchange’s upcoming album Bedazzled. You can prepare yourself for its arrival at this link. 

They’ve even blessed us with a short West Coast tour next month!

11/7: The Valley in Tacoma, WA

11/8: The Crypt in Olympia, WA

11/9: Bad Bar in Seattle, WA

11/10: Mississippi Studios in Portland, OR

11/12: The Knockout in San Francisco, CA

11/13: Thee Stork Club in Oakland, CA (SEE YOU THERE!)

11/14: Vine in Long Beach, CA

Single of the Week: “SYNESTHESIA” by Azam Ali

This song is such a lovely little jam. It’s big, it’s cinematic. It’s dark and bright at the same time.  It’s ethereal and a dance floor burner. I don’t really know what to feel with this song, and that’s what makes it so bloody great. “SYNESTHESIA” by Azam Ali is our single of the week, and all you need to know is that you should listen to this track. 

“SYNESTHESIA” is the second single off the album of the same name, and it’s coming your way on November 14th. Preorder here! 

Single of the Week: “Lush” by Black Polish

This song is so very, very heavy. “LUSH” has all the elements of the perfect modern metal song… It’s such a ferocious bit of brutality, all without the overused scream/growl that’s a signature of today’s heavy music. Black Polish is bringing the double bass drum hits with the drop D guitars, and it’s definitely pit-ready. 

“LUSH” is the latest single off Black Polish’s upcoming full-length, YUNA, coming your way October 29th- just in time for Halloween! 

Single of the Week: “Superglue” by Pony

Canadian Power Pop is my ultimate comfort food. “Superglue” by Pony is giving me that joy in an aggressively stressful period of history. This song is joyful and catchy and just feels damn good on the ear drums. 

Pony is on the road this fall with the great Pool Kids. You can buy/stream “Superglue” here, as well as learn all you can about the joy that is Pony. 

Show Review: The Hives with Snõõper at The Warfield, 9/20/25

There have been a LOT of high-profile comebacks in the last year or so… Oasis, Rilo Kiley, The Prodigy, TV On The Radio, to name a few. Somehow, the return of the literal greatest live band of their generation, The Hives, seems to have crept on the radar. They played a handful of club shows in 2023, plus a handful of dates opening for Foo Fighters in stadiums (and covering for The Sounds at Just Like Heaven at the last moment), but 2025 was the first full-scale tour since 2013. 

And if you are sleeping on these shows, you are vastly mistaken. Continue reading “Show Review: The Hives with Snõõper at The Warfield, 9/20/25”

Single of the Week: “Another Second Chance” by Rocket

It’s been a really, REALLY stressful week. I mean, I even missed single of the week last week because, well, the rest of the internet can explain that to you. I kept wanting to find some intense, political call-to-arms this week. Be Your Own Pet did give us a good one, and I’ll let you enjoy that here. But I need some comfort food. I need some loud, fuzzy guitar. I need something infinitely relatable. And I need a nice, lighthearted video with just enough drag to remind me that there is a world where radical acceptance happens, and it can just be normal. Here comes Rocket. A band that people have been trying to get me onto for like two years now, and I’m finally in. And “Another Second Chance” is an excellent song, and the video is a pleasure to watch. It warms my cold and scared Gen-X heart, reminding me that the kids are more than alright, they are definitely better than us. 

 “Another Second Chance” comes from R Is For Rocket, coming to stores and streams on October 3rd. They are also heading out on a Fall Tour, and I think I’m gonna go to this. 

NEW RAYE SINGLE! TOUR DATES! WOO HOO!!

I have a handful of show regrets. But one of the biggest was missing Raye when she played Rickshaw Stop in 2023. And everything that has come out from her since then has been exceptionally more and more brilliant. And today she dropped “Where Is My Husband?”, a proper funk banger if I’ve ever heard one. 

She’s also hitting the road this Spring, playing Bill Graham Civic Auditorium here in SF, which is just down the street from Rickshaw Stop and literally 25 TIMES BIGGER! Stream “Where Is My Husband” here. Tour dates and presale sign up here! The presale begins on 9/23 at 10 am local time. Miss the sign-up? Try your hand at tickets on 9/25 at 10 am! 

The Electronic Music Averse Guide To Portola Music Festival

For those who follow this site closely, I recently posted a podcast where I said, “I work all day on a laptop. I don’t want to dance to one at night, too.” It may seem a little odd to you, my loyal reader, that I am attending the Portola Music Festival this year. Not only am I attending, but I am deeply excited about this. Indeed, there is plenty of laptop action happening on this bill, and numerous websites are highlighting it. Tickets are available here. Full schedule here. See you September 20th-21st! 

This is who I’m excited about: Continue reading “The Electronic Music Averse Guide To Portola Music Festival”